Chapter 14

An hour after Hogan number two left the barracks following evening roll call, Hogan, LeBeau, Carter, Newkirk and Kinch scurried down the ladder into the tunnel leaving Olsen to keep watch at the door. The Frenchman hurriedly made his way to the ladder leading up to the doghouse inside the pen. Raising the doghouse slightly, he looked around until he spotted a German Shepherd he hadn't seen before.

"Hey, Bruno," he whispered loud enough to be heard by the dogs but not any guards. "C'mon, Bruno. Here boy." He smiled when he saw the dark brown and black dog hurry towards him. LeBeau grabbed the animal by its collar and gently pulled the animal down the ladder and into the tunnel where he removed its collar. Searching the collar until he found the spot, he pointed to it, and waited as Kinch stuck a small knife into the spot and pried it open gently, allowing LeBeau to remove a small folded square of paper which he handed to Hogan who was seated nearby. The men waited as Hogan unfolded the paper and read it's contents. They noticed a grim expression appear on his face.

"What's wrong, Colonel?" asked a worried LeBeau.

"It's from Otto," Hogan said slowly. "The underground checked out Stalag nine, and there was never a prisoner there by the name of Robert Hogan, nor was there even an officer with the rank of Colonel. Our friend lied to us."

"That doesn't surprise me," LeBeau grumbled as he replaced the collar around Bruno's neck.

"What do we do now, Colonel?" asked Kinch.

Hogan exhaled deeply. "I guess we're pretty much on our own, gentlemen," he said handing the message to his radioman. "By my count, including today, London's been on radio silence for five days, so we can't contact them right now." He glanced at LeBeau who was scratching Bruno's head behind the dog's ear, and the dog was licking the Frenchman's face in return. He marveled at LeBeau's way with the guard dogs and chuckled. "Take Bruno back to the pen before someone notices he's missing."

"Oui, Colonel," the Frenchman replied as he gripped the dog by its collar and gently tugged on it causing the dog to trot happily at LeBeau's side. Once they were alone, Hogan removed his cap and ran a hand over his hair before replacing his cap.

"It's times like this that I wish I was that dog walking beside LeBeau," he remarked wearily.

"How do you mean, sir?" asked Newkirk curiously.

Hogan smirked. "Well, if I was a dog, all I'd have to worry about would be eating, sleeping, and chasing female dogs instead of somebody with my name trying to take over."

"And don't forget fleas," Carter reminded his commanding officer.

"Blimey, Carter," Newkirk said with a roll of his eyes and a shake of his head. "That's a bloody nice thing to say to your commanding officer."

Kinch chuckled while Hogan gave Carter a dirty look.

"What's so funny?" Hogan asked his radioman with a not so amused expression.

"Well, sir, if you were a dog, you could always bite your namesake right in the…."

"Kinch!" Hogan exclaimed feigning shock. Then, he chuckled. "It's not a bad idea though," he added. "C'mon, let's get back upstairs." He headed in the direction of the ladder leading up to the barracks and started climbing up with Kinch, Newkirk and Carter behind him.

Hilda felt her breathing cease as his lips were pressed against hers and his tongue had gained entry into her mouth. She felt herself drifting on clouds of ecstasy as he pressed his body against hers leaving no space between them. Finally, needing air, she pulled away only to see a sorrowful look on Hogan number two's face.

"Is something wrong?" he asked, looking sad.

"Not a thing," she purred. "I just needed to catch my breath."

He chuckled. "I want to take your breath away, Hilda. I also want to take something else from you."

"What?" she asked with a slight smile gazing into his hypnotic brown eyes. That was when she felt it. Looking down, she saw he had put a hand on her knee and was slowly moving it up under the hem of her dress. "Please stop," she asked, her smile gone; she had put her hand on top of his through the material, stopping its upward progression.

"Something wrong?" he asked.

"It's just….I can't. I'm sorry." She bowed her head.

Hogan number two cupped her chin with his fingers and lifted her head so he could look into her eyes. He knew that although he had Hilda on his side, he had to be careful. If he pushed too fast and too soon, he could just as easily lose her, or she might just scream rape and that would never do. He removed his hand.

"I'm sorry. I just thought we could….I don't know….make love? I'd really like to make love to you."

Hilda smiled shyly. "I know you do. But I'm just not ready to take that next step. I don't know why. I just can't explain it."

Hogan number two smiled sweetly even though in his mind he imagined forcing the woman back down onto the car seat and taking her by force. But he fought the urge. "I understand," he said. "You don't have to apologize." He nuzzled the side of her throat. "I just hope we soon can move on to the next step. I mean, I'm a man and you are a stunningly beautiful woman I want to make passionate love to. But if you're not ready, we can wait." He kissed her lips again.

She smiled at him. "Thank you for understanding," she said. She really had no idea why she put the brakes on going further. It was almost like a little voice in her head was telling her not to. "Just be patient, liebchen. I promise you won't have to wait forever." She kissed him passionately as he wrapped his arms around her.

LeBeau soon joined Kinch, Hogan, Carter and Newkirk in the barracks at the table.

"What took so long?" asked Kinch eying the Frenchman who was late in getting back to the barracks after taking Bruno back to the pen.

LeBeau chuckled. "Bruno didn't want to go back into the pen," he said. "I got him as far as up the ladder and then he stopped at the top and wouldn't go any further."

"You sure Bruno's a boy, LeBeau?" asked Newkirk with a smirk.

LeBeau looked indignant. "Of course I am sure! What has that got to do with anything?" He got to his feet and poured himself a cup of coffee.

Newkirk snickered. "Well, we all know you have a way with the ladies, so I thought maybe…."

"Ha. Ha," LeBeau smirked back at the Englander. "Very funny." The others chuckled at the exchange.

"So how did you get Bruno back into the pen if I may ask?" asked Hogan between sips of hot coffee.

"Simple," LeBeau began with a sly smile. "I had Heidi come over and then sent her away. Bruno nearly knocked me aside going after her." Again, the guys laughed at the picture the Frenchman painted for them.

Newkirk rolled his eyes. "Sorry I asked," he said.

Kinch studied his commanding officer's face. "Any ideas, Colonel?" he asked worriedly.

"Not a one at this point," Hogan replied, frowning. He hated not being in control of a situation as he was at this moment. He honestly had no idea as to what to do about his namesake.

"Maybe we could just kidnap 'im and keep him in the tunnels until we can send 'im to London," Carter suggested innocently.

Newkirk rolled his eyes in exasperation before looking at the younger man. "What kind of a hare-brained idea is that, Carter?" he asked harshly. "It's no bloody wonder he's focused on you."

"What's wrong with my idea?" asked a puzzled Carter.

"I'll tell you what's wrong with it, mate," Newkirk explained. "If he's Gestapo and we hold 'im in the tunnels and tell ole Klink he's a Gestapo spy sent here to spy on 'im, ole Hochstetter or that Captain Kueren would be out here like a shot. Just what the bloody hell are we suppose to tell 'em?"

"Oh," was all Carter could say. "I didn't think about that part."

Hogan's face suddenly brightened as he snapped his fingers. "I've got it!" he exclaimed with excitement.

"What is it, sir?" asked Kinch.

Hogan started to his feet. "Gentlemen, it's conference time. If you'll follow me." He led the way into his quarters with the others following close behind. After the last man entered, Hogan closed the door and waited for the others to find places to sit. Once everybody was seated, Hogan wrapped his arms around himself and began to pace; but his excitement could be felt radiating from his body by the others as they waited in anticipation.

"Gentlemen, I have an idea, and this is what we're going to do." He began to explain his plan as they men listened attentively. When he was finished, he looked expectantly at the others. "Well? What do you think?"

"It could work, Colonel," said LeBeau. "But isn't it a bit risky?"

"You read me worried mind," Newkirk said with a glance at the Frenchman.

"It could be, but not if it's handled correctly. Any other questions?"

"Yeah, Colonel," said Kinch with narrowed eyes. "You sure you want to do this?"

"Unless somebody has a better idea…." Hogan said, looking around. Seeing nobody speak up, he exhaled through his nose. "Okay, then that's it. Let's go." He led the way out of his quarters and back into the common room where he and the men all sat back down at the table.

A few minutes after the men had sat down, the barracks door opened and Hogan number two waltzed inside with a wide grin on his face.

"What's got you so bloody chipper?" asked Newkirk with a disinterested look.

"I just had the most wonderful date with Hilda," Hogan number two said looking like a Cheshire cat who had cornered a mouse. "In fact, it was even better than I thought it would be." Focusing on Hogan number one, he stepped close and brought his mouth to the man's ear. "I can't begin to describe how it felt as I made love to her on the back seat of Klink's car." He chuckled.

Hogan number one bolted to his feet and with one hand roughly seized the front of his namesake's shirt and drew back his other which was in a clenched fist.

"Colonel, no!" Kinch shouted as he wrapped his arms around Hogan number one's upper body. "Colonel, stop!" He noticed Carter, LeBeau and Newkirk were also on their feet trying to push their commanding officer away from Hogan number two without success.

Hogan number two smirked. "Jealous?" he asked. "She has a soft body by the way."

Hogan number one, now enraged, was trying to free his clenched fist out of Kinch's grip, but his second-in-command maintained his strong grip.

"Gov'nor, let 'im go!" Newkirk pleaded, squeezing between the two men with his hands on Hogan number one's chest. "He's trying to bait you, sir! Don't fall for it!"

"Please, mon Colonel!" begged LeBeau. "He is lying to you! Hilda wouldn't do it! You know her! She wouldn't!"

Hogan number one seemed to suddenly calm down and his men could feel the tension leave his body almost as if a plug had been pulled and somebody let the air out. He shoved the other man away from him roughly.

"You bastard!" Hogan number one hissed. "If I find out you've touched her, you're a dead man!"

The other man smiled as he smoothed his khaki shirt and leather jacket. "I must say, you are a hot-tempered person for an officer." He chuckled. "But it seems your true colors are starting to show themselves." He sighed. "Think I will turn in now as I've had a late night." He started walking away but suddenly paused and looked back at the other Hogan who was still being held back by his men. "But just so you know, I do not have a date with the lovely Hilda tomorrow, so I'll be around all evening. Oh, and do try to keep the noise down out here, will you?"

"Just get the hell outta here!" Kinch hissed angrily.

Hogan number two laughed loudly as he turned and disappeared inside the smaller room, closing the door behind him.

Hogan closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "You can let me go," he said wearily. "I'm all right now. I promise."

"You sure, Gov'nor?" Newkirk saw Hogan nod his head. It was only then that the men all released their hold on the Colonel. They watched him slowly sink back onto the bench, remove his crush cap, and run a hand over his dark hair.

"You're right, LeBeau," Hogan said shakily. "Hilda wouldn't do that, no matter what that bastard said to her. She just wouldn't." He put his cap back on his head and pushed it back. "I have to stop letting him get to me like this."

Kinch put a hand on Hogan's shoulder. "He knows how to push your buttons, Colonel. I mean, it's like he knows you'd react if you believed he'd hurt Hilda."

"Kinch is right, sir," agreed Newkirk. "But how would he know that you have a soft spot for Hilda?"

"He knew when he told me about his first date with her and I reacted," Hogan reminded the Englander.

"That's true. But why would he focus on Hilda, Colonel?" asked Kinch. "Think about it? It's almost as if he knew focusing on her would get a reaction from you."

"He is right, Colonel," LeBeau chimed in. "It seemed he went out of his way to let you know when he had his first date with her."

Hogan's eyes narrowed as he mulled over what he was told. "He did, didn't he?" he said. "But just how would he know about Hilda and I? That's the question. I mean, it's not like it was obvious to anybody coming into camp whether they be prisoner or Kraut."

"You think somebody coulda told him, Colonel?" asked Carter.

"But who could've told him about the Colonel and Hilda?" asked a worried Newkirk.

"There's only one person I know who knows about us who could've talked," Hogan replied.

"Who, sir?" asked Kinch.

"Schultz," was Hogan's reply looking directly into his radioman's face.

Hogan number two lay awake on the lower bunk smiling. Things couldn't have gone better. He had lied to Hogan number one about sleeping with Hilda, but seeing the man's reaction was just too good to pass up the opportunity. And Hogan number one did not fail him. He then started wondering about the diversion the Private had told him about earlier in the day. Of course he had no proof of anything, but he had to admit Hogan meeting with the vet and needing a diversion was suspicious. He wondered what the purpose was. Was it so information could be passed on, or received? He figured tomorrow he would make a point of finding and speaking with Private Hill again and see if he could tell him anything else before he proceeded with his next step which not only would Hogan never see coming, but it would mark the beginning of his fall from grace so to speak.

He didn't even pretend to be asleep when the door opened and Hogan number one walked it; glared at the man on the lower bunk, and closed the door. He turned on the lamp on the desk and began to undress for bed.

"Still upset?" Hogan number two asked sweetly. He got no response from the other man. "Don't take it so bad, just because I got to her first. I mean, I'm willing to share." He noticed Hogan's mood instantly change and his face tense, but still there was silence. He watched as Hogan number one turned off the desk lamp, and climbed up onto the upper bunk. He waited until the movement on the upper bunk stilled. "I hope you have pleasant dreams, Colonel," he said softly. "I know I will."

It came to no surprise to him that his remarks were again met with silence.